Vegetable Lasagna

Can't believe I never had one of these before...my very own Advent Calendar.


Four days to catch up on...sorry...between blurry, too bright and too dark, this is the best shot of the 4 Lindt Christmas balls I munched on yesterday.

After sleeping in, walking H-woman's Epicure order over to her house (but not getting too close, because I don't want her to get sick, so close to Hawaii!), coming home, coffee and breakfast, dropping stuff off at work, feeding B's cats, shopping at the mall (came home with 2 pair pants, 2 sweaters, 2 long-sleeved t's, 2 pair shoes, some socks and some dish sets for the adopt-a-family and a present for Mom), returning to the office to drop off something else, I came home to make vegetable lasagna.

The thing to note is that I make a KILLER meat lasagna...I've been making since I first learned the recipe in grade 7 Home Economics (so don't know what they call it these days) and it has been a family favourite since. Weighs in at about 10 lbs in the pan, and gosh knows how many calories, but it is goooooooood!! Last week, craving that comfort, I bought a small vegetable one at Sunterra and immediately thought "I can do better".

It all starts with the sauce...into the pot went eveoo, onions, garlic, celery, carrots, cherry tomatoes, sun-dried tomatoes, basil, oregano, crushed chilies, a touch of sage, red wine and finally a tin of crushed tomatoes. Let this all boil and bubble for a good 45-60 minutes.

Needed a good cheesy middle, so I mixed ricotta, an egg, parm and chopped spinach together. Added a little S&P and set this aside.

Meanwhile in the oven I roasted portabello mushrooms and zucchini slices till tender and browned.

Let the layering begin!
- sauce

- noodles (whole grain, oven ready)

- sauce

- mushrooms

- sliced artichoke hearts

Add a layer of roasted red peppers.

Top this with the ricotta mixture and then with another layer of noodles.

On top of the noodles went the roasted zucchini slices (they were brushed with evoo and balsamic).

On top of that (the pan is getting pretty dang full!) the last of the sauce and then a really good layer of cheese (Kraft 4-Cheese Italiano!)...I admit, I am no vegan. Give me real cheese or don't give me any at all.

Oh, holy yum looking and it hasn't even met the oven yet!

Bake at 350 for about 30 minutes, or until this comes out!!

Resist all temptation to cut, and let it sit for about 10 minutes to set up.

All I have to say is O.M.G!!!! I am GOOD!

The great part is I have lunch for tomorrow, and will freeze the rest for when I am craving some ooey, gooey, cheesy goodness. And it is so full of veggies, I don't feel guilty for enjoying every last bite.

Day 5 of the Advent calendar is providing dessert, even though I do have some coconut gelato (I needed something for my sore throat!) that I'll also enjoy. And some mini oranges. I need all the vitamin C I can get right now.


I have a full belly and am slowly slipping into a food coma. Hopefully it helps me get over this cold. I'm off to chill.

Later,